Ich habe Pizza gegessen.
English: I ate pizza.
- Language
- German
- Level
- A2
- Unit
- Zeiten und Verbkonstruktionen
- Practice types
- 0
What this grammar point covers
The 'Perfekt' is a past tense in German. It is used to talk about actions or events that are finished. Perfekt is often used in spoken German.
When to use it
Use Perfekt to talk about things that happened in the past and are complete. It is common in conversations, stories, and informal writing.
Key forms
- haben/sein (conjugated) + Partizip II (past participle)
- Example: Ich habe gegessen.
- Example: Er ist gegangen.
Examples
Wir sind nach Hause gegangen.
English: We went home.
Sie hat ein Buch gelesen.
English: She read a book.
Du hast das Fenster geöffnet.
English: You opened the window.
Er ist schnell gelaufen.
English: He ran fast.
Tips
- Most verbs use 'haben', but verbs of movement or change often use 'sein'.
- The Partizip II usually ends with '-t' or '-en'.
- Remember to put the conjugated 'haben' or 'sein' in second position, and the Partizip II at the end of the sentence.
Exceptions and edge cases
- Some verbs have irregular Partizip II forms, like 'gehen' → 'gegangen', 'sehen' → 'gesehen'.
- A few verbs can use both 'haben' and 'sein' depending on the meaning.